Western Australia - Wheat Belt

2016 Census Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people QuickStats
Area code 509
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 5,568
Male 51.8%
Female 48.2%
Median age 24
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households 2,100
Average people per household 3.2
Median weekly household income $1,009
Median monthly mortgage repayments $1,200
Median weekly rent $189

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People

demographics & education | cultural & language diversity | employment

Demographics & education

People tables are based on a person's place of usual residence on Census night

People Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Aboriginal 5,417 97.3 72,920 96.0 590,062 90.9
Torres Strait Islander 76 1.4 1,433 1.9 32,344 5.0
Both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 75 1.3 1,623 2.1 26,767 4.1

For the 2016 Census in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, there were 5,568 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. Of these, 51.8% were male and 48.2% were female.

View the data quality statements for: Place of Usual Residence (PURP) Indigenous status (INGP)

Age Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Median age 24 -- 23 -- 23 --
0-4 years 580 10.4 8,409 11.1 73,265 11.3
5-14 years 1,377 24.7 16,962 22.3 147,134 22.7
15-24 years 879 15.8 14,074 18.5 123,719 19.1
25-34 years 665 11.9 11,452 15.1 88,861 13.7
35-44 years 598 10.7 8,860 11.7 72,394 11.2
45-54 years 637 11.4 7,894 10.4 67,415 10.4
55-64 years 480 8.6 5,136 6.8 45,433 7.0
65 years and over 349 6.3 3,192 4.2 30,952 4.8

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, the median age of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people was 24 years. Of the Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 35.1% were children aged 0 to 14 years and 6.3% were people aged 65 years and over.

View the data quality statement for Age (AGEP)
Registered marital status
People aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Married 792 22.0 11,239 22.2 105,086 24.5
Separated 191 5.3 2,212 4.4 19,112 4.5
Divorced 208 5.8 2,587 5.1 28,796 6.7
Widowed 161 4.5 1,610 3.2 13,794 3.2
Never married 2,252 62.5 32,956 65.1 261,980 61.1

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, 22.0% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people were married and 11.1% were either divorced or separated.

View the data quality statement for Registered marital status (MSTP)
Social marital status
People aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Registered marriage 597 19.9 7,947 19.2 86,716 23.1
De facto marriage 607 20.2 8,309 20.1 60,051 16.0
Not married 1,802 59.9 25,162 60.8 228,281 60.9

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, 19.9% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people were in a registered marriage and 20.2% were in a de facto marriage.

View the data quality statement for Social marital status (MDCP)
Education attendance Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Pre-school 136 6.1 1,590 5.2 16,698 6.4
Primary 830 37.1 10,756 35.4 97,859 37.5
Secondary 554 24.8 7,314 24.0 65,208 25.0
Technical or further education institution 71 3.2 1,155 3.8 14,227 5.5
University or tertiary institution 43 1.9 1,243 4.1 15,489 5.9
Other 24 1.1 479 1.6 5,047 1.9
Not stated 578 25.8 7,887 25.9 46,428 17.8

Of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, 40.2% were attending an educational institution. Of these, 37.1% were attending a primary school, 24.8% were attending a secondary school and 5.1% were attending a tertiary or technical institution.

View the data quality statement for Educational Institution Attendee Status (TYSTAP)
Level of highest educational attainment
People aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Bachelor Degree level and above 108 3.0 2,154 4.3 24,911 5.8
Advanced Diploma and Diploma level 123 3.4 1,880 3.7 23,795 5.5
Certificate level IV 102 2.8 1,436 2.8 14,308 3.3
Certificate level III 350 9.8 5,480 10.8 56,625 13.2
Year 12 398 11.1 6,950 13.7 59,949 14.0
Year 11 325 9.1 4,983 9.8 34,674 8.1
Year 10 894 24.9 10,472 20.7 77,265 18.0
Certificate level II 13 0.4 92 0.2 1,215 0.3
Certificate level I 0 0.0 20 0.0 241 0.1
Year 9 or below 570 15.9 6,343 12.5 64,604 15.1
No educational attainment 16 0.4 708 1.4 4,256 1.0
Not stated 635 17.7 9,070 17.9 56,698 13.2

Of people aged 15 and over in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, 11.1% reported having completed Year 12 as their highest level of educational attainment, 12.6% had completed a Certificate III or IV and 3.4% had completed an Advanced Diploma or Diploma.

View the data quality statement for Level of highest educational attainment (HEAP)

Cultural & language diversity

Australian Indigenous language, top responses Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Nyungar 39 0.7 387 0.5 443 0.1
Walmajarri 6 0.1 274 0.4 284 0.0
Kriol 5 0.1 2,367 3.1 7,108 1.1
Wangkatha 3 0.1 198 0.3 208 0.0
Bardi 3 0.1 314 0.4 318 0.0
 null  null  null  null  null  null  null
English only spoken at home 5,066 91.0 59,629 78.5 544,491 83.9

English was the only language spoken at home by 91.0% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt. Indigenous languages spoken at home include Nyungar 0.7%, Walmajarri 0.1%, Kriol 0.1%, Wangkatha 0.1% and Bardi 0.1%.

View the data quality statement for Language spoken at home (LANP)
Ancestry, top responses Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Australian 4,231 57.6 45,794 45.9 399,843 45.0
English 1,333 18.1 14,567 14.6 152,758 17.2
Australian Aboriginal 640 8.7 20,368 20.4 140,480 15.8
Irish 223 3.0 3,490 3.5 45,887 5.2
Scottish 155 2.1 2,659 2.7 30,843 3.5

Respondents had the option of reporting up to two ancestries on their Census form, and this is captured by the Ancestry Multi Response (ANCP) variable used in this table. Therefore, the total responses count will not equal the persons count for this area. Calculated percentages represent a proportion of all responses from people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt (including those who did not state an ancestry).

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, the most common ancestries were Australian 57.6%, English 18.1%, Australian Aboriginal 8.7%, Irish 3.0% and Scottish 2.1%.

View the data quality statement for Ancestry (ANCP)

Employment

Employment
People who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Worked full-time 689 44.0 11,109 47.1 106,960 48.0
Worked part-time 379 24.2 5,385 22.8 61,049 27.4
Away from work 118 7.5 1,871 7.9 14,143 6.4
Unemployed 380 24.3 5,241 22.2 40,486 18.2
Not in the labour force 1,936 53.6 24,363 48.1 190,132 44.3

There were 1,566 people who reported being in the labour force in the week before Census night in Western Australia - Wheat Belt. Of these 44.0% were employed full time, 24.2% were employed part-time and 24.3% were unemployed.

The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's unemployment rate. More information about Census and labour force status is provided in Understanding the Census and Census Data.

For information on the Community Development Programme (CDP) please refer to the Census Data Dictionary. CDP data is available in TableBuilder.

View the data quality statement for Labour force status (LFSP)
Occupation, top responses
Employed people aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Labourers 234 19.6 2,440 13.3 27,814 15.3
Community and Personal Service Workers 204 17.1 2,831 15.4 30,991 17.0
Machinery Operators and Drivers 197 16.5 2,631 14.3 16,774 9.2
Technicians and Trades Workers 169 14.2 2,736 14.9 24,399 13.4
Clerical and Administrative Workers 113 9.5 2,247 12.2 23,174 12.7
Professionals 107 9.0 2,482 13.5 24,339 13.4
Sales Workers 72 6.0 1,139 6.2 15,791 8.7
Managers 67 5.6 1,149 6.3 12,844 7.1

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, the most common occupations were Labourers 19.6%, Community and Personal Service Workers 17.1%, Machinery Operators and Drivers 16.5%, Technicians and Trades Workers 14.2%, Clerical and Administrative Workers 9.5%, Professionals 9.0%, Sales Workers 6.0% and Managers 5.6%.

View the data quality statement for Occupation (OCCP)
Industry of employment, top responses
Employed people aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Local Government Administration 67 6.1 422 2.3 5,511 3.0
Iron Ore Mining 65 5.9 1,777 9.7 1,970 1.1
Primary Education 48 4.4 586 3.2 4,897 2.7
Supermarket and Grocery Stores 41 3.7 454 2.5 5,555 3.1
Secondary Education 34 3.1 367 2.0 3,079 1.7

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt, the most common industries of employment were Local Government Administration 6.1%, Iron Ore Mining 5.9%, Primary Education 4.4%, Supermarket and Grocery Stores 3.7% and Secondary Education 3.1%.

View the data quality statement for Industry of employment (INDP)
Median weekly incomes
People aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Personal 397 -- 398 -- 441 --
Household 1,009 -- 1,210 -- 1,203 --

The median weekly personal income for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Western Australia - Wheat Belt was $397 and the median weekly household income was $1,009.

View the data quality statements for: Total personal income (INCP) Total household income (HIND)

Unpaid work
People aged 15 years and over
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Did unpaid domestic work (last week) 1,848 51.1 28,306 55.9 263,334 61.4
Cared for child/children (last two weeks) 891 24.7 15,384 30.4 136,079 31.7
Provided unpaid assistance to a person with a disability (last two weeks) 442 12.2 6,219 12.3 58,541 13.7
Did voluntary work through an organisation or group (last 12 months) 464 12.8 6,249 12.3 63,303 14.8

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, 51.1% did unpaid domestic work in the week before the Census. During the two weeks before the Census, 24.7% provided care for children and 12.2% assisted family members or others due to a disability, long term illness or problems related to old age. In the year before the Census, 12.8% of people did voluntary work through an organisation or a group.

View the data quality statements for: Unpaid domestic work (DOMP) Unpaid child care (CHCAREP) Unpaid assistance (UNCAREP) Voluntary work (VOLWP)

Dwellings

dwelling characteristics | dwelling structure

Dwelling characteristics

Dwelling tables exclude visitor only and other non-classifiable households

Dwelling characteristics
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Average number of people per household 3.2 -- 3.3 -- 3.2 --
Average number of persons per bedroom 1 -- 1 -- 1 --
Average number of registered motor vehicles per dwelling 1.8 -- 1.7 -- 1.7 --

There has been change in methodology used to calculate the average number of persons per bedroom. To compare the time series for average number of persons per bedroom please refer to Understanding the Census and Census Data

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, for dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, the average household size was 3.2 persons, with 1 persons per bedroom and 1.8 registered motor vehicles per dwelling.

View the data quality statements for: Number of Bedrooms in Private Dwelling (BEDD) Household composition (HHCD) Indigenous household Indicator (INGDWTD)

Housing costs
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Median weekly rent 189 -- 216 -- 250 --
Median monthly mortgage repayments 1,200 -- 1,830 -- 1,660 --

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, for dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, the median weekly rent was $189 and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,200.

View the data quality statements for: Rent weekly payments (RNTD) Mortgage monthly repayments (MRED) Indigenous household Indicator (INGDWTD)

Family household composition
Counts the types of families within family households at the dwelling level
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
One family household: Couple family with no children 375 17.8 4,014 15.1 42,536 16.2
One family household: Couple family with children 623 29.7 8,217 31.0 80,803 30.7
One family household: One parent family 561 26.7 6,970 26.3 67,528 25.7
One family household: Other family 44 2.1 740 2.8 5,547 2.1
Multiple family household: Couple family with no children 7 0.3 196 0.7 2,223 0.8
Multiple family household: Couple family with children 38 1.8 531 2.0 4,951 1.9
Multiple family household: One parent family 53 2.5 673 2.5 5,768 2.2
Multiple family household: Other family 5 0.2 76 0.3 471 0.2
Other household 395 18.8 5,123 19.3 53,195 20.2

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households, 18.2% were a couple family with no children, 31.5% were a couple family with children and 29.2% were a one parent family.

In multiple family households, only the family composition of the primary family is recorded. Other household includes lone person households and group households.

View the data quality statement for Family Household Composition, dwelling level (HCFMD)

Dwelling structure

Dwelling structure
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Separate house 1,944 93.1 22,121 83.8 211,205 80.7
Semi-detached, row or terrace house, townhouse etc 99 4.7 3,075 11.7 27,017 10.3
Flat or apartment 22 1.1 952 3.6 20,580 7.9
Other dwelling 24 1.1 241 0.9 2,897 1.1

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt there were 2,100 private dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. Where a dwelling type was stated, 93.1% were separate houses, 4.7% were semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses etc, 1.1% were flats or apartments and 1.1% were other dwellings.

View the data quality statement for Dwelling structure (STRD)
Tenure
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Western Australia - Wheat Belt % Western Australia - Wheat Belt Western Australia % Western Australia Australia % Australia
Owned outright 343 16.3 2,449 9.2 32,045 12.2
Owned with a mortgage 582 27.7 6,725 25.3 68,085 25.9
Rented 1,081 51.5 15,937 60.1 150,832 57.3
Other tenure type 8 0.4 220 0.8 1,888 0.7
Tenure type not stated 85 4.0 1,208 4.6 10,182 3.9

In Western Australia - Wheat Belt, of dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, 16.3% were owned outright, 27.7% were owned with a mortgage and 51.5% were rented.

View the data quality statement for Tenure type (TEND)

Small random adjustments have been made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from the table totals. For further information, go to the User Guide for QuickStats.

Data reported for Australia and Other Territories now includes Norfolk Island, following an amendment to the Acts Interpretation Act, 1901. Because Norfolk Island has not previously been included in the Census, any 2011 benchmarks will not include Norfolk Island.